dreams
by not a straight trumpet
Summary: Kumiko and Reina sleep and comfort each other.


**a/n:** this was sort of an experimental form of writing i wanted to try out, also i guess it's the valentine's day oneshot

i know it's been like six weeks since i last published a kumirei fic but i promise you my love for them has not diminished

* * *

 _She sees herself in a field of cherry blossoms, or sometimes yellow flowers if the timing is right. She sees Hazuki and Midori waving her over, smiles too big and too bright for their faces, and she sees_ Reina, _in all her glory, the only part of the scene standing still._

 _She wakes up soon enough after that, though._

* * *

Reina curled her body around Kumiko's - it had been an unspoken thing, how they settled in together, but she really didn't know how she'd ended up as the big spoon when Kumiko was a fair bit taller than her. Kumiko moved around a little bit in her sleep - not too much, not kicking or anything, just twitching and making grumbling noises - and Reina found it more than a little endearing. She'd been told that she slept like a rock. Tonight, though, sleep appeared to elude her.

"What're you dreaming about?" she murmured, trailing her finger along Kumiko's cheek, smiling softly. "What's in your head?"

* * *

Kumiko woke up with Reina's hand clumsily pressed against her face. She had to stifle a laugh when she saw the other girl with her mouth hanging open, still in the same position she'd been in after getting into bed. She did not look to be the ice queen she was when awake. She just looked like a girl, a heavy sleeper and a bit of a dork on occasion.

"Sleep well, Reina," she whispered, so as not to disturb her. It was a natural response, but if she was being honest with herself she probably could've blasted a foghorn by Reina's ear and she would've just grunted and flipped over. She never seemed to let anything get to her. It was admirable, in a way, but also just a mask. A good-girl skin. Kumiko knew the feeling all too well. She shook her head, blaming the late night for such strange thoughts.

* * *

 _She sees a tall silhouette, ebbing and flowing like water, never taking just one form. There's a moment when she can almost make out the cuff of a sweater, then the next moment it shifts into a uniform and the figure has a mop of curly hair. Anyhow, she's running along a gravel path, rocks catching in her shoes, trying and trying and_ trying _to catch up, but she never quite can. She pauses, gasps for breath, and squeezes her eyes shut._

It's a dream, _she says to herself, or thinks, in that way dreams always have dialogue all eerie and omnipotent, words played over a loudspeaker in your head._ I can wake up. _The figure's walking away, now, dripping into nothing at all._ I can-

 _"Reina!"_

* * *

Reina woke up shaking, sweat slipping down her forehead. Kumiko shot up beside her.

"Reina?" she mumbled, checking her all over as if she'd somehow contracted injuries while asleep. "You w-were yelling a bunch in your sleep, you seemed really freaked out."

"I'm fine." Reina pressed a hand to her forehead, wiping off some of the sweat. "It was just a nightmare."

"Sounded like a pretty bad one."

"It was."

"Do you wanna tell me about it? Sometimes that, uh, that helps me feel better." Kumiko paused. "I get it if you don't, but-"

"I have it a lot. I'm running, so fast it's like I can't even feel my legs, and I'm chasing this person - ideal - whatever - but I can't ever reach them."

"That's messed up."

"Yeah." Reina shifted in her position, rustling the covers as she did so. "I mean, it's hitting me over the head a bit with the symbolism, isn't it? I already know what it means. I think about those sorts of things every day. I don't need it to chase me in my sleep, too."

"'S okay, Reina." Kumiko nestled down next to her. "I'll be here, alright? We c-can protect each other from nightmares."

"I think I'd like that."

They slept as a tangle of limbs, intertwined and close, a shared sort of protection. Neither girl would've had it any other way.

* * *

 **a/n:** can you believe that's the first time i've written anything longer than a drabble even partially in reina's pov? happy valentine's day, or day-before-cheap-candy day if that's what you prefer


End file.
